The Northrop F-89 Scorpion was an American all-weather interceptor which initially built as a jet-powered fighter. Even though its straight wings reduced its performance, it was one of the first USAF jet fighters with guided missiles, and obviously the first fighter aircraft equipped with the unguided Genie rocket, an air-to-air nuclear weapon.

The Design and Development of F-89 Scorpion

The Scorpion was developed in 1945 from United States Army Air Forces Army Air Technical Service Command specification which explaining about Military Characteristics for All-Weather Fighting Aircraft for a jet-powered night fighter to take the place of the P-61 Black Widow. Several manufacturers including Bell Aircraft, Consolidated-Vultee, Douglas Aircraft, Goodyear, Northrop and Curtiss-Wright handed in proposals.

Northrop presented four different designs, made by Jack Northrop’s team, together with a radical flying wing but resolved on the N-24, a slim-bodied airplane with a cantilevered mid-mounted wing and two Allison J35 turbojet engines with afterburners. The N-24 had radar and a crew of two, with an armament of four 20 mm (. 79 in) cannon in a unique trainable nose turret.

One of the unconventional elements of the design was the employment of Northrop’s “Deceleron” which combined aileron/dive brake/flap that could be integrated with the slim wing design. Contracts for two prototypes were given in December 1946. At the same time Curtiss (with their XF-87) and Douglas (for their XF3D-1 Skynight Blackhawk) prototypes were also granted development contracts.

The first XP-89 prototype had its maiden flight on 16 August 1948. For much of the testing period, Curtiss’s prototype had been the front-runner for the contract, but the Northrop design demonstrated to be better. Other USAF interceptors including the F-94 Starfire and F-86 Sabre had been designed from day fighter designs.

F-89A – First production version, eight built. Fitted with revised tailplane and six cannon armament.

DF-89A – F-89As converted into drone control aircraft.

F-89B – Second production version with upgraded avionics. 40 built.

DF-89B – F-89Bs converted into drone control aircraft.

F-89C – Third production version with more powerful engines reheat J-35-A-21 or -33.

YF-89D – Conversion of one F-89B to test new avionics and armament of F-89D.

F-89D – Main production version which saw deletion of the six 20 mm cannons in favor of 104 rockets in wing pods, installation of new Hughes E-6 fire control system, AN/APG-40 radar and the AN/APA-84 computer.

YF-89E – One off prototype to test the Allison YJ71-A-3 engine, converted from F-89C.

F-89F – Proposed version with new fuselage and wings and J71 engines, never built.